The Spread of Buddhism In China

During the Srivijayan period in China, Buddhism became much more popular. As commerce gradually began to dominate the Srivijayan economy, more and more people converted to Buddhism and also supported the development of an intstitutional structure. When coming to China, Buddhism had to accomodate some of the ideas of Chinese tradtions in order to be accepted, including some Hindu values. Values which honored spirits and deities blended with the Buddhist ideas, creating a syncretic cultural configuration. Some of the best evidence of the spread of Buddhism comes from a place called Dunhuang which is located where the north and south branches of the silk road meet and enter China, meaning that trade is probably how Buddhism was spread into China. Around Dunhuang are cave-temples that depict various "scenes" from Buddha's life. There are 492 identified caves, all built in a small slot of time, showing the growing popularity of Buddhism through long-distance trade and travel. Almost the entire Chinese society voluntarily converted to Buddhism, from merchants, to ruling elites. Buddhism was spread throughout China by trade through the silk road, and travel like the cave-temples.

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My name is Genevieve and I am a student studying ap world history. World history is so interesting to me because the past can fortell the future and learning how our people developed throughout time is so fascinating. Studying the history behind places I've been and plan to go to is really cool. Welcome to my blog.